English

English 103: Sections 5, 10         (PDF Version)    
Section 5   FAC 204A  MWF 10–10:50 a.m. 
Section 10 FAC  219 T Th  9:30–10:50 a.m.
Fall, 2010                                               
Grant T. Smith, Ph. D.

Office:  MC 533
Office Hours:  T Th 1–3 p.m. MWF 2–3 p.m.
Phone: 3485
Email:  gtsmith@viterbo.edu 

S Y L L A B U S

Texts:

Rereading America: Cultural Contexts for Critical Thinking and Writing by Gary Colombo, et. al. 
Easy Writer, fourth edition, by Andrea A. Lunsford
Backspace Number One: The Viterbo University Journal of Freshman Writing, 2010–2011

Course Description: In this course we will explore six rhetorical strategies for composing an essay: narration, definition, classification, comparison and contrast, cause and effect, and persuasion. In the process of reading and writing, we will also develop critical thinking skills, critical reading skills, research skills, and writing skills that will help us become effective and successful college communicators.

Policies:   

• Click here for the university definitions of an excused  and unexcused absence  
• Click here for the university policy on sexual harassment  
• Click here for the university policy on plagiarism 
• If you are a person with a disability and require any auxiliary aids, services or other accommodations for this class, please see Jane Eddy in Murphy Center Learning Center 332 (796-3194) within ten days to discuss your accommodation needs.  If there other accommodations that need to be made for you to succeed in the class, please indicate those needs to the instructor.  Click here for a link to the Learning Center.
• In the event of an infectious disease outbreak, university officials will monitor progress and work with local, state, and national authorities to determine the best course of action regarding institutional operations. Information related to any widespread infectious diseases outbreak will be available on Viterbo’s website and Viterbo Health Services website (http://www.viterbo.edu/HealthServices.aspx). In addition, the Center for Disease Control (CDC) website has extensive information on health threats (http://www.cdc.gov). If you have specific questions about your personal health, please contact your medical provider or Health Services.

Core Abilities:

• Thinking—Students engage in the critical and creative thinking
• Ethical Decision Making—Students respond to ethical issues
• Communication—Students communicate effectively orally and in writing
• Aesthetic Sensitivity—Students engage in artistic experiences and reflect critically upon them
• Cultural Sensitivity—Students demonstrate a respect for the diversity of the human experience
• Community Involvement—Students demonstrate responsible citizenship

Course Work Requirements:

• Semi-weekly journal responses to readings, discussions, activities
• Three or four formal essays
• Class Attendance and Participation

Evaluation Criteria:

• The students’ comprehension of the texts we read through their participation in class and their journal responses.
• The students’ writing communication skills will be evaluated through their journal responses and their formal essays.  Rubrics will be provided as guides for appropriate journal responses and formal essays.
• The students’ class participation will be evaluated through their attendance and in-class observations.

Course Grading

• Attendance:  100 points
• Journal responses:  100 points
• Essays:  100 points for each essay

  Objectives: 

English 103 has specific goals, skills it aims to teach you through the work of the course. The goals are common to all sections of English 103.

 Schedule

Week One:  August 30

Diagnostic Writing Assignment
Introduction:  Critical Thinking
“Thinking Critically, Challenging Cultural Myths” 1
“The Big Hunt” 3 (from Backspace)
“Lights, Camera…Oh Crap” 8 (from Backspace)
Pigeon Egg Head 
Benetton PowerPoint 

Weeks Two and Three:  September 6, 13 (Labor Day, September 6)

Harmony at Home: The Myth of the Model Family
“What We Really Miss about the 1950s” 32
“What Is Marriage?” 89
“Linguistic Relativity” 14 (from Backspace)

Weeks Four and Five:  September 20, 27

Learning Power:  The Myth of Education and Empowerment
“Idiot Nation” 128
“Against School” 148
“In the Basement of the Ivory Tower” 238
“Be My Real World Friend” 27 (from Backspace)
Description Essay Due

Weeks Six and Seven:  October 4, 11 (Feast Day of St. Francis, October 4)

Money and Success:  The Myth of Individual Opportunity
from Ragged Dick 258
“Horatio Alger” 272
Horatio Alger Association 
“Framing Class, Vicarious Living, and Conspicuous Consumption” 330
“The Big Move: My Family’s Immigration from Ecuador to the U.S.” 21 (from Backspace)
“American Dream” PowerPoint
The Misfit PowerPoint

Weeks Eight and Nine:  October 18, 25 (Mid Semester Break October 22)

Created Equal: The Myth of the Melting Pot
“C.P. Ellis” 398
“Deconstructing America” 462
“The End of White America?” 497
Narration Essay Due

Weeks Ten, Eleven, Twelve:  November 1, 8, 15

True Women and Real Men:  Myths of Gender
“How the Americans Understand the Equality of the Sexes” 520
“Becoming Members of Society: Learning the Social Meanings of Gender” 527
“”Bros Before Hos”: The Guy Code 608
“The Descent of Men” 618
“’No Strings Attached’: An Analysis of a Tiparillo Cigar Ad” 42 (from Backspace)
Calvin Klein PowerPoint 
Persuasive Essay Due

Weeks Thirteen and Fourteen: November 22, 29 (Thanksgiving November 24-26)

Ah Wilderness: American Myths of Nature and the Environment
from Walking 646
Walking 
from As the World Burns: 50 Simple Things You Can Do to Stay in Denial 715
“Environmental Optimism” 34 (from Backspace)

Week Fifteen:  December 6

Presentations and Conferences
Final Persuasive Essay Due

Week Sixteen:  December 13

Final Exam:

Section 5:    Tuesday, December 14, 1–2:50 p.m., FAC 204A
Section 10:  Wednesday, December 15, 10–11:50 a.m. FAC 219

Plagiarism Statement for the Viterbo English Department

You commit plagiarism when you use another person's words or ideas without acknowledgment, either intentionally or unintentionally.  You commit plagiarism when you incorporate into your own writing words or ideas from a print source, an electronic source, or directly from another person without citing that source.

Plagiarism is a serious offense within an academic community.  At Viterbo University, the sanctions for plagiarism range from failure for the assignment to expulsion from the University.

At the end of your class discussion of plagiarism, please sign and return the following statement:

I have participated in our class discussion of plagiarism.  I have been given the opportunity to ask any questions I might have about this serious, academic offense, and I understand both the concept of plagiarism and the sanctions that Viterbo University will impose if a student commits plagiarism.

Student Name (please print):

___________________________________________________

Student Signature:

___________________________________________________